On 26 August 2008, Cazorla announced that Real Madrid were interested in signing him.[9] He then went on to cause a stir in the media by rejecting the team announcing that, "There are many other things in football besides Real Madrid. It's clear that it is possible to say "no" to them, There is no doubt that they are a great team, but I also feel very satisfied and valued at my club". "I hope I can continue growing at Villarreal because I am young and I’m only starting off with the national team."[10]

During a league game against UD Almería in early April 2009, Cazorla injured his right fibula after suffering a challenge from two opponents.[11] He missed several games but el Submarino Amarillo still managed to qualify for the Europa League, as the player made his comeback earlier than expected in the side's final match, a 3–2 win at RCD Mallorca, and finished the league campaign with a career-best eight goals.

On 26 July 2011 Cazorla left Villarreal and returned to Andalusia to join high-spending Málaga, for a fee of €21 million.[15][16] He scored on his official debut on 28 August, netting from a superbly taken free kick but in a 1–2 away loss against neighbouring Sevilla FC.[17] On 12 September he scored a brace and gave an assist in another local derby, a 4–0 home win against Granada CF,[18] and netted his fourth in only four games nine days later – again from a free kick – in a 1–0 home success over Athletic Bilbao.[19]

Cazorla made an exciting start to his Arsenal career, picking up the man of the match award on his debut for the club against Sunderland. The Spain international scored for his national side in a friendly win over Puerto Rico and followed that with another accomplished display at Stoke. "Every day I’m becoming more used to [my team-mates] and I'm enjoying myself more," he said. "The club have done a lot to help me settle in the team and to make it easy for me to get used to life in the city. Every day is a little bit better and I feel a little more comfortable."[22]

Cazorla continued his impressive start to life at Arsenal with a series of sparkling performances in September. The Spanish playmaker grabbed his first goal for the club in a 2–0 win against Liverpool at Anfield.[23]

Cazorla made five appearances over October, scoring once with a blockbuster against West Ham that won the Arsenal's Goal of the Month award. The Spaniard drew praise from manager Arsène Wenger after that game, stating: “He is right footed but when you watch him play you don’t know. It shows how important that is in the modern midfield.[24]

Santi was an ever-present figure throughout November, starting in every one of Arsenal’s fixtures. The playmaker scored a consolation at Old Trafford and, like Lukas Podolski and Olivier Giroud, scored in his first North London Derby appearance, where he was also named man of the match. “I feel valued here,” he told Arsenal in an interview. “The manager gives me confidence, and within the team I have a responsibility that I love having. Little by little, I hope to keep improving and I hope to help the team as much as possible.”[25]

Santi played in every game except the Champions League defeat to Olympiacos in December. The Spanish playmaker scored his first hat-trick for the club against Reading, a performance that saw him pick up another man of the match award. "It’s a pleasure for anyone to play with a player like Santi," Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain told Arsenal in an interview. "You can give him the ball in tight situations and you can trust him to get out of them and create things. We’ve been working on getting him and Jack [Wilshere] in behind the lines, between the defence and the midfield and picking up little pockets of space. When you get the ball to them two in those positions, especially Santi, he can create things—shots on target, goals and assists.” Despite a so far successful campaign, Cazorla was mired in controversy during the match against West Bromwich Albion, as he earned a penalty upon apparently being tripped by Steven Reid, which was converted to make it 1–0 in an eventual 2–0 home success. However, television replays showed that there had been no contact between Reid and Cazorla.[26] This led to Wenger issuing an apology for Cazorla being awarded a penalty and suggesting that the Spaniard could face disciplinary action for going to ground too easily; the manager also revealed that the playmaker had told him that he "was touched, lost his balance".[27]

Santi maintained his record of playing in all of the club’s Premier League games this season and scored against West Ham with an audacious backheel. The playmaker was also deployed in both FA Cup games against Swansea City in January.[28]

Cazorla enjoyed a fruitful February, scoring the winner in a man of the match display against Sunderland before also securing victory against Aston Villa with a brace. The Spaniard appeared in all of Arsenal’s fixtures and is still the only member of manager Arsène Wenger’s squad to have featured in every Premier League fixture this season. “You see he takes his chances with his technique and his feeling,” Per Mertesacker told Arsenal. “He is the perfect footballer."[29]

Santi was still the only Arsenal player to have featured in every Premier League game this season after playing every minute of Arsenal’s March fixtures. An impressive performance against Swansea saw him named man of the match for another time, before he finished the month in style by netting in the 4–1 win against Reading at Emirates Stadium. “For any footballer, it’s the most important thing to make the people who support you happy and give back to them on the pitch,” Santi said on his positive relationship with the Arsenal’s fans.[30]

Santi continued his record of being the only Arsenal player to feature in every Premier League game in the 2012/13 season after starting every game during April. "What I’ve taken from this year is that as a team, we weren't very consistent for half of the season, which cost us in terms of reaching the higher positions in the league," he told Arsenal. "Now we’re a lot more consistent and that’s the form we were lacking before—being consistent and getting the three points whenever we could. We’re a long way off the top because of this lack of form, even though it was only for half the season.”[31]

On 14 May 2013, Cazorla assisted all four of Arsenal's goals, in a vital 4–1 win over Wigan Athletic which relegated their opponents and kept the Gunners in fourth place, with the eventual qualification to the Champions League.[32] Cazorla finished an exceptional first season in England as the only Arsenal player to feature in all 38 league games, and on 31 May 2013, he was named Arsenal's Player of the Season for 2012–13.[33] He ended his first season at Arsenal with 12 goals and 14 assists from 49 appearances.[33] “I think he is a bit of an underrated player in the Premier League,” Arsène Wenger told Arsenal. “When you think he was not in the [PFA] team of the season picked by the players, it's quite harsh. Personally I would have put him in there."[34]

Cazorla preparing to take a corner against Sunderland in a Premier League match on 22 February 2014.

Cazorla returned to pre-season training a few weeks later than normal after his involvement in the Confederations Cup for Spain. He started from the bench against Aston Villa but was introduced at half-time after Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain's injury. He played in every minute of Arsenal's games after that and played an important part in the side's three straight wins early on in the season.[35]

Santi's only appearance came against Tottenham Hostpur in September. The Spaniard picked up an ankle injury before the Sunderland game that kept him out of action for the rest of the month.[36]

Cazorla returned to the team after missing the majority of Arsenal's September games with an ankle injury. The Spanish playmaker started the game against Norwich City and was involved in the build-up to Jack Wilshere's stunning goal in the first half. He came on as a substitute in the defeat at home to Borussia Dortmund and his introduction seemed to swing the momentum towards Arsenal before Robert Lewandowski's late winner for the German side.[37]

Cazorla featured in all six of Arsenal's games in November and scored his first goal of the season with an expertly-taken effort against Liverpool. The Spaniard, along with Mesut Özil, operated mostly from the flanks but due to the flexibility of Arsenal's midfield, was able to drift inside and cause problems for opposition defences with his passing ability. "I feel comfortable playing on the left flank" Cazorla said. "Starting on the left is fine as long as I have the freedom to move on the pitch. The main difference is the way you play when the opponent has possession. As soon as we get the ball back, Mesut [Özi] Jack [Wilshere] or myself are free to change positions, however as soon as we give the ball away, we have certain duties to fulfil."[38] On 30 November 2013, Cazorla made his 300th career top-flight league appearance, when he started for Arsenal in a 3–0 win against Cardiff City.

Cazorla started the first three games in December before being rested against Manchester City and Chelsea. The Spaniard returned to the side for the win over West Ham United, when he produced a bright performance and provided the pass for Theo Walcott's equalising goal.[39]

Cazorla produced a string of sparkling performances in January. The Spanish playmaker thumped home Arsenal's first against Tottenham Hotspur, before scoring an eye-catching brace in the win at home to Fulham. The goals kept coming for the 29-year-old with further strikes against Coventry City and Southampton.[40] Speaking after the win over Spurs, Cazorla said: "We played really well as a team. Tottenham have some good players but we played at a good level and we just need to continue that now." With his amazing form in January, Cazorla was voted Arsenal's Player of the Month, scoring five goals in six matches.[41]

Cazorla continued his good form in February. The Spaniard provided an exquisite pass for Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain's first goal against Crystal Palace. He went on to start four more times for the Gunners during the month.[42]

Cazorla played completed every minute of Arsenal's seven fixtures in March and committed his long-term future to Arsenal by signing a new contract.[43] The Spaniard produced bright performances in the games against Everton, Tottenham and Manchester City but struggled to make an impact in the disappointing defeats to Stoke City and Chelsea.[44] "I'm very happy at the club, being able to stay here and sign [a new] contract – it's great to get it sorted,” Cazorla said. "I like being here, I'm happy and I think that the club can be a big player in competing for the top trophies in years to come. That's important for me. "One of the main reasons for coming here was to get better as a player and joining Arsenal has definitely made me a better player."[45]

After a disappointing start to April against Everton, Cazorla tucked home the winning penalty in the shootout against Wigan Athletic to send Arsenal to the final of the FA Cup at Wembley Stadium.[46] He also provided assists for three more Arsenal goals in April and showed his versatility throughout the month by playing on both wings and just behind the striker.[47]

The Spaniard also added to his assist tally when his corner was headed home by Olivier Giroud against West Brom and scored Arsenal's first goal – a direct free-kick – as the team came from 2–0 down to defeat Hull City 3–2 in the 2014 FA Cup Final, winning his first piece of silverware with the club.[48] He finished the campaign with seven goals and 47 appearances in all competitions.[49]

Cazorla began the campaign with another goal at Wembley, slotting home Arsenal's opener against Manchester City in the 2014 FA Community Shield. The win against the defending Premier League champions gave Arsenal their second title in 2014.[50] The Spaniard also set up Aaron Ramsey's goal against Everton with a low cross and was also involved in Alexis Sánchez's strike against Leicester City. The 29-year-old has also revealed his personal targets for the season, telling Arsenal: “I hope to equal or beat my goalscoring tally from last year,” he said. “That's something every player wants to achieve. Hopefully I'll help the team with many goals because that would be a signal that I can be useful. Apart from that, I'd like to play as much as possible. Luckily the manager has always trusted me in the previous two years. I played a good number of games and hopefully I'll keep doing so.”[51] On 26 November, he assisted both Yaya Sanogo and Sánchez in 2–0 win against Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League.[52] On 28 December, he scored the opening goal in an away match against West Ham in the Premier League. [53] On 4 January he assisted Sánchez for the second goal in a 2–0 win against Hull City in the FA Cup. [54] The Spaniard added to his goal tally on 18 January in a 2-0 away win against holding Premier League champions Manchester City.[55] Cazorla was instrumental in the home game against Aston Villa in the Premier League as he scored from the penalty spot and assisted goals to Theo Walcott and fellow countryman Hector Bellerin in a 5-0 win.[56] On February 21, he scored the opening goal away to Crystal Palace in a 2-1 Premier League win.[57]

On 17 May 2008, senior side boss Luis Aragonés surprised the Spanish press by including the uncapped Cazorla and Sergio García in his UEFA Euro 2008 squad, over more established wingers such as Joaquín Sánchez and Albert Riera. However, Riera not playing much at the time [60] To justify his decision when asked, Aragonés stated, "They are players [Cazorla and García] who are performing very well and had the possibility of coming. I made myself decide between Riera and Cazorla where I considered each player's form".[61]

After making his debut on 31 May 2008 in a 3–1 friendly win over Peru, Cazorla made substitute appearances in the tournament's group stage matches against Russia,[62]Sweden[63] and Greece,[64] also coming from the bench in the quarterfinals against Italy, converting his penalty in the ensuing shootout which Spain won.[65] In the final, he played the last 25 minutes for David Silva, as Spain defeated Germany 1–0 and aided his country in winning their first major tournament in 44 years.[66]

Cazorla was named in Spain's 30-man provisional squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup,[70] and was also included in the final list for the tournament.[71] On 19 June, he made his debut in the tournament by coming on for the last 14 minutes in place of Pedro against Chile at the Maracanã in the second group game. Spain lost 2–0 and were eliminated.[72]